


Fervor

by Axandrela



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Could be platonic, Gen, Post- Into The Speedforce, could be shippy, mention of canon character deaths, post episode, you chose
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-15
Updated: 2017-03-15
Packaged: 2018-10-05 18:40:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,066
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10314506
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Axandrela/pseuds/Axandrela
Summary: He messed up. Really messed up. Again. The ring seems to burn in his pocket. He’s out on the streets. Alone. He needs a shoulder to cry on and a place to lay his head. Then he’s at her door…





	

**Author's Note:**

> Two stories in one day!?!? Two in a month (that are usualy written long before posting) is usually pretty good for me! And these were both writen today!
> 
> This story can be read as a stand alone, but would also fit with all my other DC stories so...

He groans in frustration as yet another call goes to voice-mail. It’s not late and Cisco usually is still awake, but for some reason he’s not. He sits down on the sidewalk, his back against a building and considers his options. His whole world is spinning out of control and he doesn’t know what to do. Going to Joe’s is out of the question given why he needs a place to stay, and the Lab is always an option but he doesn’t really want to be there right now. It’s only HR there anyway, and as much as that building is home, it feels empty to be there without everyone.

He plays with his phone, flipping it a few times between his fingers. He could call Caitlin, but he hasn’t really been the best friend to her lately. To anyone really. He’s been so panicked at the thought of loosing Iris that he’s been snapping at everyone and ignoring their problems. With a sigh he leans his head back against the wall. He does still need to change the future, even if he can save Iris, that doesn’t solve all the problems seen in that future. ‘Killer Frost at large’, they still need to change that headline.

Without realizing his fingers dial her number. He needs a friend right now, needs someone to assure him that the future he’s fighting against hasn’t come true. Caitlin answers and his voice is cracked as he says her name. “Do you need to talk? My door is open.”

He doesn’t even hang up, just runs. The speedforce is coursing through his veins and lightning is flickering around him, as he rushes through the cool night air. He doesn’t feel the wind biting at his skin, turning it cold despite the heat he generates. He doesn’t notice the streets blurring across his vision as he races across the city. His jacket catches fire and the smell of burning rubber fills the air, but he continues on without notice.

She’s at the door when he arrives, in flowery pyjama pants and a STAR Labs t-shirt, with her arms open. “You look like you need a hug.” Her voice is soft as she wraps her arms around his neck and strokes his hair soothingly. His breath comes in gasps and sobs as he buries his face in her hair. He doesn’t even realize he’s crying until his tears begin to crystalize, tiny droplets of salty ice freezing around the individual strands of hair.  
One of her arms moves from his neck and down to his back and she begins tracing random designs to calm him. His breathing becomes more even and she loosens the grip of her embrace, his arms following suit. She leads him inside and to the couch where she sits waiting for a moment before he talks. “I ruined everything. Again.” He’s hunched over, elbows on his knees and head in his hands. Caitlin places a hand gently on his back, her eyes clouded with concern. “I can’t change the future and I don’t know how to save Iris or stop you from going evil, or…”

“Barry, calm down. Ok?” He’s nearly hysteric as she speaks, panic filling every corner of his mind, but he does as she asks and takes a deep breath at her words “Look at me. Do I look like I’m going to turn into Killer Frost?” he meets her eyes and shakes his head slowly, his breathing beginning to even once again “I have my necklace to prevent that, and you don’t have to save her on your own.”

“But I do, I have to be the one to-“

Her words are sharp but her tone is soft as she cuts him off, staring him right in the eyes. “In that moment maybe, but you’re not alone. We can figure out how to make you faster, create a plan to help you save her. We will save her and you’ll get to live ‘happily ever after’ alright?”

He curls downward again, shaking his head in resignation. “No. I really messed up. I don’t think she’ll ever forgive me.”

She wraps her arms around him from the side, the coldness of her arms more apparent now that his skin has warmed from the cool night air. “Oh, Barry. I’m pretty sure that it’s impossible not to forgive you. And if you’re truly meant to be together, I don’t think anything can change that.”

“But what if something does? What if I can’t save her? Or she never forgives me?” his eyes are filled with tears as he looks at her pleadingly.

Her eyes begin to sparkle slightly as she stares back at him “Then I guess this universe has a different plan. A different way for you to find your happy ending.”

The two sit in silence for a moment as he ponders her words and debates his next ones. “In the speedforce, when Ronnie showed up, you were there. With a baby.” Her breath catches at his words. Her eyes are lost and broken at the thought of what she lost, causing him to look away from the pain in her face. He chokes on his next words “You were happy and would have been happy in real life if-“

Her gaze turns steely as she cuts him off knowing his next words. “Ronnie’s death was not your fault. It was his choice. And despite losing him again and losing that possibility, I am still happy.” He looks at her again. Both of their eyes rimmed with tears. “Just because you lose one happy ending doesn’t mean that there isn’t still one out there for you.”

His voice is broken, weak and scratchy “But I should have been able to save him, to save all of them. I should be able to save her.”

“No hero can save everyone, Barry, you don’t have to carry the weight of the world alone. And you can’t take care of the world if you aren’t taking care of yourself. So let us help. Let me help.” He nods weakly as she gets up from the couch and gets a blanket from the closet. She wraps it around him and hugs him once more before walking to her bedroom.

“Cait? Thanks. I don’t know what I did to deserve a friend like you. But I’m glad I did.”


End file.
